The Mahabharata, of, Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, BOOK 3, (Tirtha-yatra Parva), SECTION CXXVI

  The Mahabharata, of, Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, BOOK 3, (Tirtha-yatra Parva), SECTION CXXVI

"Yudhishthira said, 'O great Brahmana, how was that tiger among kings,

Mandhata, Yuvanaswa's son, born,--even he who was the best of monarchs,

and celebrated over the three worlds? And how did he of unmeasured lustre

attain the very height of real power, since all the three worlds were as

much under his subjection, as they are under that of Vishnu of mighty

soul? I am desirous of hearing all this in connection with the life and

achievements of that sagacious monarch. I should also like to hear how

his name of Mandhata originated, belonging as it did to him who rivalled

in lustre Indra himself: and also how he of unrivalled strength was born,

for thou art skilled in the art of narrating events.'

"Lomasa said, 'Hear with attention, O king! how the name of Mandhata

belonging to that monarch of mighty soul hath come to be celebrated

throughout all the worlds. Yuvanaswa, the ruler of the earth, was sprung

from Ikshvaku's race. That protector of the earth performed many

sacrificial rites noted for magnificent gifts. And the most excellent of

all virtuous men performed a thousand times the ceremony of sacrificing a

horse. And he also performed other sacrifices of the highest order,

wherein he made abundant gifts. But that saintly king had no son. And he

of mighty soul and rigid vows made over to his ministers the duties of

the state, and became a constant resident of the woods. And he of

cultured soul devoted himself to the pursuits enjoined in the sacred

writ. And once upon a time, that protector of men, O king! had observed a

fast. And he was suffering from the pangs of hunger and his inner soul

seemed parched with thirst. And (in this state) he entered the hermitage

of Bhrigu. On that very night, O king of kings! the great saint who was

the delight of Bhrigu's race, had officiated in a religious ceremony,

with the object that a son might be born to Saudyumni. O king of kings!

at the spot stood a large jar filled with water, consecrated with the

recitation of sacred hymns, and which had been previously deposited

there. And the water was endued with the virtue that the wife of

Saudyumni would by drinking the same, bring forth a god-like son. Those

mighty saints had deposited the jar on the altar and had gone to sleep,

having been fatigued by keeping up the night. And as Saudyumni passed

them by, his palate was dry, and he was suffering greatly from thirst.

And the king was very much in need of water to drink. And he entered that

hermitage and asked for drink. And becoming fatigued, he cried in feeble

voice, proceeding from a parched throat, which resembled the weak

inarticulate utterance of a bird. And his voice reached nobody's ears.

Then the king beheld the jar filled with water. And he quickly ran

towards it, and having drunk the water, put the jar down. And as the

water was cool, and as the king had been suffering greatly from thirst,

the draught of water relieved the sagacious monarch and appeased his

thirst. Then those saints together with him of ascetic wealth, awoke from

sleep; and all of them observed that the water of the jar had gone.

Thereupon they met together and began to enquire as to who might have

done it. Then Yuvanaswa truthfully admitted that it was his act. Then the

revered son of Bhrigu spoke unto him, saying. 'It was not proper. This

water had an occult virtue infused into it, and had been placed there

with the object that a son might be born to thee. Having performed severe

austerities, I infused the virtue of my religious acts in this water,

that a son might be born to thee. O saintly king of mighty valour and

physical strength! a son would have been born to thee of exceeding

strength and valour, and strengthened by austerities, and who would have

sent by his bravery even Indra to the abode of the god of death. It was

in this manner, O king! that this water had been prepared by me. By

drinking this water, O king, thou hast done what was not at all right.

But it is impossible now for us to turn back the accident which hath

happened. Surely what thou hast done must have been the fiat of Fate.

Since thou, O great king, being a thirst hast drunk water prepared with

sacred hymns, and filled with the virtue of my religious labours, thou

must bring forth out of thy own body a son of the character described

above. To that end we shall perform a sacrifice for thee, of wonderful

effect so that, valorous as thou art, thou wilt bring forth a son equal

to Indra. Nor with thou experience any trouble on account of the labour

pains.' Then when one hundred years had passed away, a son shining as the

sun pierced the left side of the king endowed with a mighty soul, and

came forth. And the son was possessed of mighty strength. Nor did

Yuvanaswa die--which itself was strange. Then Indra of mighty strength

came to pay him a visit. And the deities enquired of the great Indra,

'What is to be sucked by this boy?' Then Indra introduced his own

forefinger into his mouth. And when the wielder of the thunderbolt said,

'He will suck me,' the dwellers of heaven together with Indra christened

the boy Mandhata, (literally, Me he shall suck). Then the boy having

tasted the forefinger extended by Indra, became possessed of mighty

strength, and he grew thirteen cubits, O king. And O great king! the

whole of sacred learning together with the holy science of arms, was

acquired by that masterful boy, who gained all that knowledge by the

simple and unassisted power of his thought. And all at once, the bow

celebrated under the name of Ajagava and a number of shafts made of horn,

together with an impenetrable coat of mail, came to his possession on the

very same day, O scion of Bharata's race! And he was placed on the throne

by Indra himself and he conquered the three worlds in a righteous way, as

Vishnu did by his three strides. And the wheel of the car of that mighty

king as irresistible in its course (throughout the world). And the gems,

of their own accord, came into the possession of that saintly king. This

is the tract of land, O lord of earth, which belonged to him. It abounds

in wealth. He performed a number of sacrificial rites of various kinds,

in which abundant gratuities were paid to the priests. O king! he of

mighty force and unmeasured lustre, erected sacred piles, and performed

splendid pious deeds, and attained the position of sitting at Indra's

side. That sagacious king of unswerving piety sent forth his fiat, and

simply by its virtue conquered the earth, together with the sea--that

source of gems--and all the cities (or [of?--JBH] the earth), O great

king! The sacrificial grounds prepared by him were to be found all over

the earth on all sides round--not a single spot, but was marked with the

same. O great king! the mighty monarch is said to have given to the

Brahmanas ten thousand padmas of kine. When there was a drought, which

continued for twelve consecutive years, the mighty king caused rain to

come down for the growth of crops, paying no heed to Indra, the wielder

of the thunder-bolt, who remained staring (at him). The mighty ruler of

the Gandhara land, born in the lunar dynasty of kings, who was terrible

like a a roaring cloud, was slain by him, who wounded him sorely with his

shafts. O king! he of cultured soul protected the four orders of people,

and by him of mighty force the worlds were kept from harm, by virtue of

his austere and righteous life. This is the spot where he, lustrous like

the sun, sacrificed to the god. Look at it! here it is, in the midst of

the field of the Kurus, situated in a tract, the holiest of all. O

preceptor of earth! requested by thee, I have thus narrated to thee the

great life of Mandhata, and also the way in which he was born, which was

a birth of an extraordinary kind.'"

Vaisampayana said, "O scion of Bharata's race! Kunti's son, thus

addressed by the mighty saint, Lomasa, immediately put fresh questions to

him, with regard to Somaka."

SECTION CXXVII

Yudhishthira said, 'O best of speakers! what was the extent of power and

strength possessed by king Somaka? I am desirous of hearing an exact

account of his deeds and of his power."

"Lomasa said, 'O Yudhishthira! there was a virtuous king Somaka by name.

He had one hundred wives, O king, all suitably matched to their husband.

He took great care, but could not succeed in getting a single son from

any one of them, and a long time elapsed during which he continued a

sonless man. Once upon a time, when he had become old, and was trying

every means to have a son, a son was born to him, Jantu by name, out of

that century of women. And, O ruler of men! All the mothers used to sit

surrounding their son and every one giving him such objects as might

conduce to his enjoyment and pleasure. And it came to pass that one day

an ant stung the boy at his hip. And the boy screamed loudly on account

of the pain caused by the sting. And forthwith the mothers were

exceedingly distressed to see how the child had been stung by the ant.

And they stood around him and set up cries. Thus there arose a tumultuous

noise. And that scream of pain suddenly reached (the ears of) the

sovereign of the earth, when he was seated in the midst of his ministers,

with the family priest at his side. Then the king sent for information as

to what it was about. And the royal usher explained to him precisely what

the matter was with reference to his son. And Somaka got up together with

his ministers and hastened towards the female apartments. And on coming

there, O subjugator of foes! he soothed his son. And having done so and

coming out from the female apartments, the king sat with his family

priest and ministers.'

"Somaka then spoke thus, 'Fie on having only a single son! I had rather

be a sonless man. Considering how constantly liable to disease are all

organized beings, to have an only son is but a trouble. O Brahmana! O my

lord! With the view that I might have many sons born to me, this century

of wives hath been wedded by me, after inspection, and after I had

satisfied myself that they would prove suitable to me. But issue they

have none. Having tried every means, and put forth great efforts, they

have borne this single son, Jantu. What grief can be greater than this? O

most excellent of the twice-born caste! I am grown old in years and so

are my wives too. And yet this only son is like the breath of their

nostrils, and so he is to me also. But is there any ceremony, by

celebrating which one may get a hundred sons? (And if there is one such),

tell me whether it is great or small, and easy or difficult to perform.'

"The family priest said, 'There is a ceremony by virtue of which a man

may get a century of sons. If thou art able to perform it, O Somaka, then

I shall explain it to thee.'

"Somaka said, 'Whether it be a good or an evil deed, the ceremony by

which a hundred sons may be born, may be taken by thee as already

performed. Let thy blessed self explain it to me.'

"The family priest thereupon said, 'O king! Let me set on foot a

sacrifice and thou must sacrifice thy son, Jantu in it. Then on no

distant date, a century of handsome sons will be born to thee. When

Jantu's fat will be put into the fire as an offering to the gods, the

mothers will take a smell of that smoke, and bring forth a number of

sons, valourous and strong. And Jantu also will once more be born as a

self-begotten son of thine in that very (mother); and on his back there

will appear a mark of gold.'"

SECTION CXXVIII

"Somaka said, 'O Brahmana! whatever is to be performed--do precisely as

it may be necessary. As I am desirous of having a number of sons, I shall

do all that may be prescribed by thee."

"Lomasa said, "Then the priest officiated in the sacrifice in which Jantu

was offered as the victim. But the mothers is in pity forcibly snatched

the son and took him away. And they cried, 'We are undone!' And they were

smitten with torturing grief and they caught hold of Jantu by his right

hand, and wept in a piteous way. But the officiating priest held the boy

by the right hand and pulled him. And like female ospreys they screamed

in agony! but the priest dragged the son killed him and made a burnt

offering of his fat in the proper form. And, O delight of the race of

Kuru! While the fat was being made an offering of the agonised mothers

smelt its smell, and of a sudden fell to the ground (and swooned away.)

And then all those lovely women became with child, and O lord of men! O

scion of Bharata's race! When ten months had passed a full century of

sons was born to Somaka begotten on all those women. And, O monarch of

the earth! Jantu became the eldest and was born of his former mother and

he became the most beloved to the women,--not so were their own sons. And

on his back there was that mark of gold and of that century of sons, he

was also superior in merit. Then that family priest of Somaka departed

this life as also Somaka after a certain time. Now he beheld that the

priest was being grilled in a terrible hell. And thereupon he questioned

him, 'Why art thou, O Brahmana! being grilled in this hell?" Then the

family priest exceedingly scorched with fire, spake to him saying, 'This

is the outcome of my having officiated in that sacrifice of thine.' O

king, hearing this, the saintly king thus spake to the god who meteth out

punishments to departed souls, 'I shall enter here. Set free my

officiating priest; this reversed man is being grilled by hell-fire on my

account only.'

"Dharmaraja thereat answered thus, 'One cannot enjoy or suffer for

another person's acts. O best of speakers! these are the fruits of thy

acts; see it here.'

"Somaka said, 'Without this Brahmana here, I desire not go to the blessed

regions. My desire is to dwell in company with this very man, either in

the abode of the gods, or in hell, for, O Dharmaraja! my deed is

identical with what hath been done by him and the fruit of our virtuous

or evil deed must be the same for both of us.'

"Dharmaraja said, 'O king! If this is thy wish, then taste with him the

fruit of that act, for the same period that he must do. After that thou

shall go to the blessed regions.'

"Lomasa said, The lotus-eyed king did all that exactly in the way

prescribed to him. And when his sins were worked off, he was set free

together with the priest. O king! Fond of the priest as he was, he won

all those blessings to which he had entitled himself by his meritorious

acts and shared everything with the family priest. This is his hermitage

which looketh lovely before our eyes. Any one would attain the blessed

regions, if he should spend six nights here controlling his passions. O

king of kings! O leader of the tribe of Kurus! Here, free from excitement

and self-controlled, we must spend six nights. Be thou ready therefor.'"

SECTION CXXIX

"Lomasa said, 'Here, O king! The lord of born beings himself performed a

sacrifice in former times,--the ceremony called Ishtikrita, which

occupied one thousand years. And Amvarisha, son of Nabhaga, sacrificed

near the Yamuna river. And having sacrificed there, he gave away ten

Padmas (of gold coins) to the attendant priests, and he obtained the

highest success by his sacrifices and austerities. And, O Kunti's son!

This is the spot where that sovereign of the entire earth, Nahusha's son,

Yayati, of unmeasured force, and who led a holy life, performed his

sacrificial rites. He competed with Indra and performed his sacrifice

here. Behold how the ground is studded with places for the sacrificial

fires of various forms, and how the earth seems to be subsiding here

under the pressure of Yayati's pious works. This is the Sami tree, which

hath got but a single leaf, and this is a most excellent lake. Behold

these lakes of Parasurama, and the hermitage of Narayana. O protector of

earth! This is the path which was followed by Richika's son, of

unmeasured energy, who roamed over the earth, practising the Yoga rites

in the river Raupya. And, O delight of the tribe of Kurus! Hear what a

Pisacha woman (she-goblin), who was decked with pestles for her

ornaments, said (to a Brahmana woman), as I was reciting here the table

of genealogy. (She said), "Having eaten curd in Yugandhara, and lived in

Achutasthala, and also bathed in Bhutilaya, thou shouldst live with thy

sons. Having passed a single night here, if thou wilt spend the second,

the events of the night will be different from those that have happened

to thee in the day-time, O most righteous of Bharata's race! Today we

shall spend the night at this very spot. O scion of Bharata's race! this

is the threshold of the field of the Kurus. O king! At this very spot,

the monarch Yayati, son of Nahusha, performed sacrificial rites, and made

gifts of an abundance of gems. And Indra was pleased with those sacred

rites. This is an excellent holy bathing-place on the river Yamuna, known

as Plakshavatarana (descent of the banian tree). Men of cultured minds

call it the entrance to the region of heaven. O respected sir! here,

after having performed sacrificial rites of the Saraswata king, and

making use of the sacrificial stake for their pestle, the highest order

of saints performed the holy plunge prescribed at the end of a sacred

ceremony. O monarch! King Bharata here performed sacrificial rites. To

celebrate the horse-sacrifice, he here set free the horse who was the

intended victim. That monarch had won the sovereignty of the earth by

righteousness. The horse? he let go more than once were of a colour

checkered with black. O tiger among men! it was here that Marutta

sheltered by Samvartta, leader of saints, succeeded in performing

excellent sacrifices. O sovereign of kings! Having taken his bath at this

spot, one can behold all the worlds, and is purified from his evil deeds.

Do thou, therefore, bathe at this spot.'"

Vaisampayana said, "Then that most praiseworthy of Pandu's sons, there

bathed with his brothers, while the mighty saints were uttering laudatory

words to him. And he addressed the following words to Lomasa, 'O thou

whose strength lieth in truthfulness! By virtue of this pious act, I

behold all the worlds. And from this place, I behold that most

praiseworthy of Pandu's sons Arjuna, the rider of white steed."

'Lomasa said, 'It is even so, O thou of powerful arms! The saints of the

highest order thus behold all the regions. Behold this holy Saraswati

here, thronged by persons who look upon her as their sole refuge. O most

praise worthy of men! having bathed here, thou wilt be free from all thy

sins. O Kunti's son! here the celestial saints performed sacrificial

rites of Saraswata king: and so did the saints and the royal saints. This

is the altar of the lord of beings, five yojanas in extent on all sides

round. And this is the field of the magnanimous Kurus, whose habit it was

to perform sacrifices.'"

SECTION CXXX

"Lomasa said, 'O son of Bharata's race! If mortals breathe their last at

this spot, they go to heaven. O king! Thousands upon thousands of men

come to this place to die. A blessing was pronounced on this spot by

Daksha, when he was engaged in sacrifice here, (in these words), 'Those

men that shall die at this spot shall win a place in heaven.' Here is the

beautiful and sacred river, Saraswati, full of water: and here, O lord of

men, is the spot known as Vinasana, or the place where the Saraswati

disappeared. Here is the gate of the kingdom of the Nishadas and it is

from hatred for them that the Saraswati entered into the earth in order

that the Nishadas might not see her. Here too is the sacred region of

Chamashodbheda where the Saraswati once more became visible to them. And

here she is joined by other sacred rivers running seawards. O conqueror

of foes, here is that sacred spot known by the name of Sindhu--where

Lopamudra accepted the great sage Agastya as her lord and, O thou whose

effulgence is like unto that of the sun, here is the sacred tirtha called

Prabhasa, the favoured spot of Indra and which removeth all sins. Yonder

is visible the region of Vishnupada. And here is the delightful and

sacred river, Vipasa. From grief for the death of his sons the great sage

Vasistha had thrown himself into this stream, after binding his limbs.

And when he rose from the water, lo! he was unfettered. Look, O king with

thy brothers at the sacred region of Kasmeera, frequented by holy sages.

Here, O scion of Bharata's race, is the spot, where a conference took

place between Agni and the sage Kasyapa, and also between Nahusha's son

and the sages of the north. And, O great prince, Yonder is the gate of

the Manasasarovara. In the midst of this mountain, a gap hath been opened

by Rama. And here. O prince of prowess incapable of being baffled, is the

well-known region of Vatikhanda, which, although adjacent to the gate of

Videha, lieth on the north of it. And O bull among men, there is another

very remarkable thing connected with this place,--namely, that on the

waning of every yuga, the god Siva, having the power to assume any shape

at will, may be seen with Uma and his followers. In Yonder lake also

people desirous of securing welfare to the family, propitiate with

sacrifices the holder of the great bow Pinaka, in the month of Chaitra.

And persons of devotion having passions under control, performing their

ablutions in this lake, become free from sins and, without doubt, attain

to the holy regions. Here is the sacred tirtha called Ujjanaka, where the

holy sage Vasistha with his wife Arundhati and also the sage Yavakri

obtained tranquillity. Yonder is the lake Kausava, where grown the

lotuses called Kausesaya, and here also is the sacred hermitage of

Rukmini, where she attained peace, after conquering that evil passion,

anger. I think, O prince, that thou hast heard something about that man

of meditations, Bhrigutunga. There, O king, before thee is that lofty

peak. And, O foremost of kings, yonder is Vitasta, the sacred stream that

absolveth men from all sins. The water of this stream is extremely cool

and limpid, and it is largely used by the great sages. O prince, behold

the holy rivers Jala and Upajala, on either side of the Yamuna. By

performing a sacrifice here, king Usinara surpassed in greatness Indra

himself. And, O descendant of Bharata, desirous of testing Usinara's

merit and also of bestowing boons on him, Indra and Agni presented

themselves at his sacrificial ground. And Indra assuming the shape of a

hawk, and Agni that of a pigeon, came up to that king. And the pigeon in

fear of the hawk, fell upon the king's thigh, seeking his protection.'"